wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “custom lists”
wp.org orders by popularity, so a plugin a host bundled onto millions of sites, or a big-brand one that's slow and mediocre, can sit at the top. Our ranking is built to answer a different question: which of these is actually worth installing. How this works →
For “custom lists”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 1 plugin is pushed down for signals wp.org ignores: errors, a host-installed base, or removal risk.
wp.org search ranks on
Install count (uncapped), the raw star average, freshness, and support. Popularity dominates, so the biggest install base usually wins regardless of how it got there.
We add
A cap on the install boost, volume-weighted ratings, and signals wp.org can't see: whether it throws errors on current PHP, whether the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
List Custom Taxonomy Widget shows at wp.org #9 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 8K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 21 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Custom Sidebars – Dynamic Sidebar Classic Widget Area Manager places #8 on merit, 4.7★ from 1028 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #1 2 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #4 2 too low 3 
Simple Custom CSS and JS 600K+ · 4.4★ (104)
wp.org #2 1 too high 4 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #3 1 too high 5 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #5 6 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Custom Permalinks 100K+ · 4.1★ (116)
wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Custom Sidebars – Dynamic Sidebar Classic Widget Area Manager 100K+ · 4.7★ (1028)
wp.org #13 5 too low 9 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1916)
wp.org #12 3 too low 10 
ECS – Ele Custom Skin for Elementor 100K+ · 4.6★ (117)
wp.org #10 11 
Product Addons for Woocommerce – Product Options with Custom Fields 30K+ · 4.9★ (474)
wp.org #16 5 too low 12 
Custom Fonts – Host Your Fonts Locally 400K+ · 4.3★ (62)
wp.org #8 4 too high 13 
Custom Taxonomy Order 50K+ · 4.8★ (96)
wp.org #14 1 too low 14 
Secure Custom Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (69) heavy footprint
wp.org #11 3 too high 15 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #17 2 too low 16 List Custom Taxonomy Widget 8K+ · 4.7★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #9 7 too high 17 
Custom Twitter Feeds – A Tweets Widget or X Feed Widget 100K+ · 4.8★ (401)
wp.org #24 7 too low 18 P Page-list 30K+ · 4.7★ (89)
wp.org #18 19 
Skyboot Custom Icons for Elementor – Elementor Icons library – 14300+ Icons 200K+ · 5.0★ (22) thin reviews
wp.org #15 4 too high 20 
Custom Order Status Manager for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.7★ (117) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #22 2 too low 21 
Real Custom Post Order: Create a custom order for your content 8K+ · 4.8★ (42) not PHP-current
wp.org #21 22 
MB Custom Post Types & Custom Taxonomies 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #19 3 too high 23 
Custom Field Template 30K+ · 4.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #23 24 
Custom Adobe Fonts (Typekit) 60K+ · 4.4★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #20 4 too high Merit ranking caps the install boost at 1M (wp.org leaves it uncapped), replaces the raw star average with a volume-weighted Bayesian score and a Wilson lower bound, and keeps wp.org's own freshness and compatibility decays. Method from the plugin-directory source; see Meta Trac #8298. Positions are tracked daily from the first visit to a keyword, so the small arrows show movement since tracking began.